


A Little Help From His "Friends"

by one_more_offbeat_anthem



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Original Character(s)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-03
Updated: 2020-08-03
Packaged: 2021-03-05 19:33:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,398
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25690615
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/one_more_offbeat_anthem/pseuds/one_more_offbeat_anthem
Summary: When Resistance supply smuggler Myra Leonosa is captured by the First Order, she expects to have coordinates tortured out of her and then to be killed. What she doesn’t expect is that Kylo Ren’s discovered that she’s friends with Rey—and rather than Rey’s whereabouts, he wants tips on how to flirt with her. An uneasy “friendship” forms between Myra and Kylo Ren as he tries, and tries, and tries again to get the girl.(this story exists in an alternate world where Ben Solo lives at the end of TROS. Also, this story spans from TLJ to TROS.)
Relationships: Kylo Ren & Rey, Rey & Ben Solo, Rey & Ben Solo | Kylo Ren, Rey/Ben Solo, Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren, Reylo
Comments: 1
Kudos: 9





	A Little Help From His "Friends"

I have to say, awakening on a First Order ship, handcuffed to a chair, is not my typical day—but when you’re with the Resistance, nothing is typical. 

I’m studying the cuffs, trying to figure out how to escape, when I hear ominous breathing behind me. I roll my eyes and muster some faux courage, “Nice of you to join me, you goth space bastard. How’s it going? Gotten any more scars from amateur Jedi?”

Kylo Ren (because of course that’s who it is) walks—no, he struts—in front of me, “Don’t speak to me of that. Are you Myra Leonosa?”

“The one and only.”

“Do you know Rey from Jakku?”

“What do you want with her?” I raise an eyebrow, “Want to try and kill her again?”

“Are you her friend?”

“I guess?” I shrug as much as the cuffs will allow, “I mean, I met her a few times when I was looking for parts and supplies—Jakku’s a pretty alright place to look for that stuff, but I don’t like to stay long. And she was a bit of a homebody, anyways. We got to know each other better when I stayed on the Resistance base for a few weeks recently—after she beat you in that forest battle. Are you sure you were ever trained?”

“Shut up.” He pauses in front of me, and then slowly takes off his mask. He looks…..different than I expect. A little rounder, and the hair is definitely longer than anticipated. There’s a softness to his edge—but he’s also a mass murderer, I remind myself. 

“Why don’t you just torture locations out of me and get it over with?” I ask, “Unless you want some haircare tips. I say, don’t brush it after you shower.”

He glares at me, “I didn’t kill Rey when I first met her….I found her in the forest and carried her here….and in the forest, she didn’t just beat me….I offered to teach her how to fight.” He puts his head in his hands, “Forgive me for being so forward, Myra, but I think—I think I like her!”

Despite the fact that I’m still vaguely terrified and Kylo is known for his temper (and his flaming lightsaber), I start laughing hysterically. Finally, I control my giggles, “You _like_ her? Is that why you’ve kidnapped me, to have someone to confess that to?”

Kylo sighs, “I haven’t had a lot of experience with, uh, friends or people my age. The Knights of Ren aren’t exactly great company.”

“Yeah, your emo boyband of mediocre fighters? They suck.”

“It hurts, but it’s true.” He smiles awkwardly, “Since you’re her friend—and, unlike her friend Finn, I didn’t try to kill you recently—I thought maybe you could give me some tips?”

I grin, “This is way better than I what I was expecting when I came to, so of course! What do you want to know?”

“How to uh, make her not hate me, maybe?”

“Hmmm…well, to start, maybe start murdering people she likes less. And stop trying to duel her. Those seem like the basics. After that, throw in a few compliments, show interests in her interests, continue to not murder people….and you’ll have it in the bag. Fair warning, though—she may be quiet, but she’s strong-willed.”

“Oh, I know. She resisted me _and_ escaped. Using the Force.”

“Of course she did. That’s Rey! Now, if you don’t need anything else, could you let me go? I’ve got Resistance stuff to do—unless you still want to murder me.”

“No, I’m through with you, you can go—under one condition.”

“What’s that?”

“…..Can I call your ship if I ever need any more advice?”

I take a look at the wannabe Sith Lord in front of me and make a split second decision (largely based on trying not to encounter the business end of his lightsaber), “Sure. But don’t make a habit of it.”

******

A few weeks later, I’m thumbing through my ship’s manual, trying to figure out what replacement parts I need, when my holo-caller rings.

“Who is it?” I ask my ship’s computer.

“Call from Kylo Ren,” it replies.

“Answer it.” 

Kylo’s face and torso appear—he looks harried. “Myra, you’ll never guess what happened!”

“No ‘hello?’ Since I’ll never guess, tell me.”

He takes a deep breath, “I just….I don’t know how to explain it, but the Force connected Rey and I—I could see her and she could see me, and we could talk. And we did! I tried to do what you said—I said I could see only her, which was both a statement of fact and from the heart, and—“

I cut him off, “What did she say in response?”

“Uhhhh….” He grimaces, “She called me a murderous snake. Well, she shot me first—this was the second time the Force brought us together.”

“I mean, you did just kill your dad.” 

“Don’t remind me.” He sighs, and for a second I see how tortured he must be, but no—he’s still one of the head honchos of the First Order. I’m only doing this to keep from dying.

“Okay, well, that was a good start, I guess….do you think the Force will connect you guys again?”

“Uh….I hope so,” he says, “I’d like to see her face again….she’s so….pretty doesn’t cover it…..I don’t know what to say! What do I say?” 

“You could try and tell her that, I guess.”

“Hm. I’ll give it a go! Thanks! Bye!”

“Goodb—“ Before I can finish, he’s ended the call.

I roll my eyes and keep looking through the manual. I wonder when he does any actual leading.

******

The next time my holo-caller rings, I’m asleep and it wakes me up.

“Who,” I say, sitting up, “Is calling at this hour?”

“It is not nighttime everywhere,” my ship replies calmly, “Call from Kylo Ren.”

I climb out of my bunk and head to the controls, dragging a blanket with me, “Answer it.”

“Myra! Hi! Did I wake you up?”

“Yes, Kylo. Some people—“ I stifle a yawn, “Sleep. Although you may not really be a person, so….”

He frowns, “Don’t you want to hear how things are going?”

“Yeah, sure. Hit me.” 

“Well, we talked again. Which was great, you know. I guess. It was a little awkward….I was changing, so I wasn’t wearing a shirt…”

“And let me guess, you had on stupid high-waisted pants?” Despite my weariness, I start laughing, “That is _excellent_. Was she impressed?”

“Uh…she asked if I had a towel. So I don’t, uh, think so.” He’s blushing, I can tell, even over the holo-caller, “And then we talked again…..I bared my soul, told her about when I left my Jedi training, a real bonding moment….I think she’s starting to actually listen to what I have to say!”

“Well, that’s great.” I yawn again, “So what do you want to know?”

“How do I keep this connection going?”

“I say, support her. She’s going on this whole Jedi journey alone, you know, and she’s strong, but she wouldn’t mind having someone in her corner. You can use the Force—granted, you use it for bad—so you get her, you can relate.”

“And I can read her mind with it, if I want.”

“ _Don’t_ do that, okay?”

“Okay. Sorry that I, uh, woke you up.” He waves awkwardly, “Bye!”

“Bye?” I end the call.

The little Sith-turd is growing on me.

*******

The next time my holo-caller rings, it’s the next day, so I don’t even bother to ask the ship who it is. I simply say, “Accept call….Hello, Kylo.”

“Hi, Myra. Well, something _supremely_ exciting has occurred.”

“Pray tell.” I flip a few switches on the control panel and spin my captain’s chair to the wall switches.

“ _We held hands_. And then my Uncle Luke came and I’m pretty sure he wanted me dead, but uh….we held hands. And I told her she wasn’t alone! And we talked about our feelings!”

I roll my eyes, “How old are you, man? Have you never held hands with a girl before?”

“Like I said, I haven’t had much of a chance to make friends or anything. Snoke, he found me and trained me after I left my uncle….he was a lot. Lots of rules.”

“Has it ever occurred to you that maybe, just maybe, Snoke is a bad influence? I’m not saying you should murder more people, but if you do murder more people, you should think about putting him on the top of the list.”

“Huh,” Kylo says, “That’s one way to look at it, I guess. Anyways, I feel like we’ve just been building so much of a relationship with this bond—and I actually like that I’m never wearing my helmet. I feel free, you know?”

“You don’t wear your helmet when you talk to me,” I point out.

“I always call you after I talk to her….And I guess in a way, you’re my friend.”

“We’re not friends,” I reply flatly, “Did you miss the part where I work for the Resistance and you’re one of the leaders in the First Order?”

“But we _could_ be friends,” Kylo says, slightly hopeful.

“Maybe if you were less evil. That also might help you get Rey, you know.”

“I’m trying! She says she sees light in me. Maybe she’s right. Anyways. I’ll think about what you said about Snoke.”

“Bye,” I say, sighing.

“Bye!” 

******

It’s been about a day, and let me tell you—I am getting _sick_ of Kylo Ren. He’s just called me again, but unlike the last few calls, where he’s been bouncy, he’s despondent.

“I thought there was progress!” I say, trying to cheer him up, lest I feel his wrath, “I mean, you guys were really connecting.”

“And we could have connected more…..I had my chance, and I _blew it._ ” He puts his head in his hands, “It was all going so well, Myra. She came to my ship, came to me! So I cuffed her and took her to Snoke—“

“What!?”

“Wait, wait, it gets better! We had a really great conversation in the elevator—she said that she believed I could be good again. And I thought about kissing her—but that would have been sort of forward, right? And I had just handcuffed her and all, so that’s sort of awkward….Well, I don’t know what came over me when we got to Snoke’s throne room, but when he ordered me to kill her…I killed him instead!”

I pumped my fist in the air, “Good job, buddy! So where did things go wrong?”

“We fought off all his guards back-to-back—she even saved my life a few times. She’s so good at fighting, isn’t she? And so beauti—I’m getting off track. I offered her my hand, I even told her she mattered again….but she rejected me.”

“What _exactly_ did you say?” I lean forward.

“Uh….I said that she was nothing, but not to me.”

I cough, “Kylo, you _cannot_ tell the girl you like she’s nothing, even if you follow it with something nice! Of course she didn’t take your hand! I mean, did you sweeten the deal by turning to the light?”

“Uh, no, I wanted her to rule with me….”

“Rey is a woman of values, you fool.” I stammer, “I mean, you not-smart man. Don’t murder me, okay?” 

“I won’t,” he says despondently, “But there’s something else…”

“ _What?_ ”

“I, uh….declared myself Supreme Leader instead.”

I smack my forehead with my hand, “You know what you are, Kylo? Wait—what’s your full name? Your real name? Your non-goofy name?”

“….Ben Solo. But I thought you all already knew that.”

“I knew your last name would be Solo. But everyone on the Resistance base was sort of quiet about you—General Organa was mourning the death of your father, in case you forgot that you murdered him. But anyways. _Ben Solo, you are a blithering idiot._ Once again, please don’t kill me.”

“I’m beginning to think that she was wrong, that there’s not any light left any me….how could she see it? I mean, I’m just as bad as you say.”

“Or maybe not,” I reply soothingly, “You could always use your new position to do less-evil things.”

“Maybe. Well, I hear there’s a battle happening on Crait, so I have to do my job or whatever. Bye, Myra.” He ends the call.

I almost feel sorry for the guy. 

Almost.

*******

I figure that I’ll never hear back from Kylo Ren—or, as I started calling him in my head, Ben. I heard he dueled with a vision of his uncle on Crait, but that Rey and the rest of the Resistance escaped and have set up shop somewhere else. I’ve dropped off supplies there a few times—but I’ve never seen her. I’ve told some of the others to tell her I said hi, though. She’s always training—and I can’t very well tell her the man who just tried to kill them all has been asking me for romance advice.

But, nearly a year after the last call, my ship computer tells me, “Call from Kylo Ren.”

“Really? Answer it…..hi, Be—Kylo,” I say, “What’s up?”

“Nothing much.” His mood is much surlier than the last time we talked, “Just, you know, messing things up, as per usual.”

“Uh…what’s happened this time? I heard you decided to become pals with Palpatine…dangerous stuff, dealing with that guy.”

“I know. But I have no choice. Well, I’m sure you know why I’m calling.”

“Either you heard from Rey or you’ve decided to kill me.”

He laughs hollowly, “The first one. Well, I saw her at a festival on Pasaana, and then later outside the city there…..I’ve learned something terrible, something I can’t tell anyone but I feel like I need to tell her….but I didn’t want to believe it, so I pushed her, and she used Force lighting and got really upset…I’ve screwed it up.”

“I feel like you screwed it up before this, Supreme Leader.”

“Hm.”

“Well,” I root around for something to say, “At least you saw her again, right? And you didn’t try to kill her?”

“No….but I still feel bad. And what happened proved my worst fears were true.”

“Care to share with the class?”

He shakes his head, “I can’t—I can’t even think about saying it aloud. But I’ll have to. I have to tell her—because I learned something else, something good.”

“What’s that?”

“We’re a dyad in the force—that’s why we’re connected. Maybe our souls were made for each other—I mean, there was a prophesy about this and everything. Maybe it’ll work out after all.”

It’s my turn to smile grimly, “I just hope it turns out with you turning to the light and not her turning to the dark. No offense, but I want you to lose this war.”

“None taken. Bye, Myra.” And he’s gone.

****

Less than a week later, he’s back—and his mood hasn’t improved.

I don’t even get a hello, instead, he instantly starts talking, “I offered her my hand again, and she didn’t take it! She didn’t take it! I told her the secret and that’s probably why!”

“What is the secret, you under-inflated Sith beanbag?”

He stops, “What sort of insult was that?”

“One to make you shut up and focus. Now, what did you tell her?”

“Well, I saw though our Force bond that she was in my quarters—we may have dueled again. So I went to my ship, and there she was in the hangar—just us and some stormtroopers. So I told her the truth—she’s….she’s a Palpatine, Myra. She’s his granddaughter.” He looks like he’s about to cry.“Oh, buddy…..” My heart falls. Rey, a Palpatine? What if she falls to the dark side and all hope for the Resistance is lost? But I stomach my fear, “Well, did you also tell her the dyad thing?”“Yeah…but she left with her friends. I’m gonna go find her, though. It’s kind of a long story—but I know she’s looking for a Sith wayfinder to go to Exegol and confront him…Maybe I could help her get there faster.”

“Don’t do anything rash,” I advise.

“Have I ever?”I raise an eyebrow.

*****

It’s less than two hours later when the next call rolls in, and I almost don’t recognize the man. Kylo Ren has lost his signature jacket and cloak, he has a massive hole in his shirt, and he’s completely soaked. There’s a sort of manic energy.

“Hey, buddy,” I say hesitantly, “What’s up?”

“So many things—I destroyed the wayfinder, and then Rey stabbed me, and then she healed me because we felt my mom die, and then I saw a vision of my dad, and then I threw away my lightsaber—“

“Wait, General Organa is dead? That means Poe Dameron is in charge, doesn’t it?” I let out a stream of air, “He’s a fool if I’ve ever seen one. A good guy, and a good leader when pushed, but a fool. Sorry. Keep going.”

“Well, I’m going by Ben Solo now—you’re the first person I’ve told besides, well, myself. Rey stole my ship and flew away—I don’t know where. I think she feels bad about stabbing me. But she healed me, and told me that she did want to take my hand, _Ben’s_ hand, so I think she likes me still—anyways. I’m going to Exegol to see if she goes there. I’m going to help her defeat Palpatine.”

“You’re going to _what_?”

He looks at me seriously, “Do I need to say it again, Myra? I’m gonna go help her defeat Palpatine.” And then he ends the call.

I stare off into the space where the holographic version of his face just was in shock.

What is happening?

*****

I get off of my ship at the Resistance base and take a stretch. The battle we just fought against the First Order and their Sith fleet on Exegol was long and hard, but we’re out of it now. Around me, people are celebrating.

Lieutenant Connix runs up to me, “Myra! So nice to see you again!”

“Nice to see you too, Lieutenant.” I fist-bump her, “Nicer to be done with this war—although I’ll probably keep smuggling. Old habits die hard.”

I keep walking, waving at various people. I see Poe Dameron and feel two percent bad about calling him a fool. He did, with that Finn’s help, lead us out of this. Suddenly I’m crushed into a hug.

“Myra! I haven’t seen you in forever!” The hugger steps back and it’s Rey—covered in dirt, with a bloody forehead, but Rey nonetheless.

“Hey there,” I reply, grinning, “Guess you made it out?” Then I see the figure standing next to her—it’s Ben, and he’s smiling sheepishly. I notice they’re holding hands.

“Yeah…oh, Myra, this is Ben—formerly Kylo Ren, you know. Ben, this is my friend Myra.”

“Oh, yeah, I know.” he says.

“Wait, you guys have met?” she asks.

“He kidnapped me once. It’s kind of a long story.”

“You can say that again,” I say, and then we all grin at each other.

That night, when I head into my ship to go to sleep, I’m bone-tired from all of the fighting and the following celebrations—but it’s nice to have something to celebrate again. I’m so sleepy that I very nearly miss the note on my pillow. Written in slanting handwriting, it says,

_Myra—We fought off Palpatine together—well, she did most of the work. I was emotional support—and I fought off the Knights of Ren (didn’t you call them a emo boyband once?). And then she died, and I brought her back to life with the Force. And then we kissed. Thank you for all your advice—and for being my first real friend. B.S. _

I guess _maybe_ the former wannabe Sith lord-Supreme Leader-goth space bastard turned savior-helper is my friend.

If you really stretch the meaning of the word. 


End file.
